Rolf Albach, Chairman of the GDCh's Association for Chemistry and Economics (VCW), is a member of our Sustainability Commission. For him, sustainability means preserving the freedom for future generations to lead a good life within natural limits - with their own ideas of what constitutes this good life.
He sees the GDCh's sustainability strategy as indispensable, because chemistry enables a good life for 10 billion people, but also has side effects. This makes research and teaching in global cooperation all the more important. For many, chemistry and sustainability seem to be a contradiction in terms - Rolf Albach agrees, but emphasises pragmatically: "There is no reset button to the 17th century. This contradiction must be resolved through research and teaching.He explains his involvement in the commission modestly and at the same time resolutely: Someone has to do it. With his qualifications in science, business and politics, coupled with his enjoyment of the task, he wants to make his contribution.For Anna Emmerich, a Master's student at LMU and member of the JCF Sustainability team, sustainability means above all: thinking ahead. Not only should the direct manufacture of products be considered, but also the entire product life cycle, including ecological and social consequences. Sustainability should be a guiding principle that is always taken into account - not an optional positive side effect.
A sustainability strategy is important for the GDCh because there are already many good approaches and projects for more sustainability. A joint strategy can bring these together to achieve even more together. The GDCh has the opportunity to be a pioneer and, as a role model for industry and science, to present companies and faculties with guidelines for their own sustainability strategies.Chemistry and sustainability seem to be a contradiction in terms for many. Anna Emmerich wants to help ensure that this is no longer the case. Even if the industry requires more complex solutions than other areas, chemists have more diverse ways of tackling the problem. In addition, sustainable solutions can also be provided for other industries - chemistry can be a driver for more sustainability.She is involved in the GDCh Sustainability Commission because it is important to her that students and doctoral candidates are also represented. This facilitates dialogue between the generations in the GDCh. Her personal wish is for all chemistry students to be familiarised with what sustainable chemistry means during their studies. She would also like to contribute to this as part of the JCF's Sustainability team. The commission's work provides her with new input, while at the same time she can bring feedback from students and doctoral candidates back to the commission.Kevin Keller, IYCN Executive Board member and PhD student in Bioinorganic Chemistry at Justus Liebig University Giessen, is involved in our Sustainability Commission with a clear vision: he wants to ensure that future generations can still enjoy our planet. He has very specific images in mind - forests, green meadows and a bright blue sky that remind him every day why it is so important to treat our planet responsibly.
As a young scientist, Kevin knows that his generation will feel the consequences of today's environmental pollution the most. This is precisely why he wants to take responsibility now and work on solutions - not just for Germany, but worldwide. He sees the GDCh as having a special duty in this respect: "As a scientific society, we must show ways in which we can meet the pressing challenges of our time. A well thought-out sustainability strategy provides the necessary orientation and creates a common thread that anchors sustainability in research, teaching and everyday life.
Chemistry and sustainability seem to many to be a contradiction in terms. Kevin sees it differently: "Even if research sometimes produces unavoidable waste, these short-term burdens are necessary investments in a sustainable future. Only through targeted experiments today can we develop the green technologies of tomorrow that will benefit our society in the long term.Dr Hildegard Nimmesgern from the GDCh Commission on Equal Opportunities in Chemistry sees sustainability as the order of the day to preserve life for humans, animals and plants on our planet. For her, only globally sustainable chemistry can counteract the exploitation of our planet and climate change. As a scientific society for chemistry, the GDCh must therefore take responsibility and pool its expertise in order to make it available to all decision-makers.
Chemistry and sustainability do not have to be contradictory, says Hildegard Nimmesgern: For her, chemistry is a key science that enables productivity and prosperity through innovation. At the same time, it has the potential to develop solutions to existing problems and eliminate shortcomings. A sound understanding of substances and materials creates the necessary basis for the correct handling of them and thus forms the foundation for a resource-conserving circular economy.
In the GDCh Sustainability Commission, she is particularly committed to the social pillar of sustainability. People must be involved in the transformation process - through fair, respectful treatment and the equitable inclusion of diverse perspectives and experiences. This is the only way to successfully master the challenges of the future.For Dr Stefanie Wieck, Deputy Chair of the "Environmental Chemistry & Ecotoxicology" specialist group, sustainability means first and foremost showing respect - for the planet and for other people, regardless of whether they are alive today or will be in the future. Humans and nature cannot be considered separately in the sense of the Planetary Health concept, because all life on earth is interconnected. Only the system as a whole can be stable. As the planetary limit for chemicals has already been exceeded, changes are urgently needed.
She considers an overarching sustainability strategy to be necessary for the GDCh, as its more than 28,000 members naturally have different perspectives on chemistry. This diversity is valuable and can be the basis for the GDCh to provide important impetus so that chemicals can make their contribution to sustainability. At the same time, however, it is also a challenge, as compromises must be found within the GDCh between all perspectives before credible communication can be made to society. The sustainability strategy sets important guidelines for finding these compromises in terms of how comprehensively proposed solutions must be discussed.Chemistry and sustainability are not a contradiction in terms for Stefanie Wieck: "Chemistry can contribute to sustainable solutions if the potential consequences for people and the environment are considered from the outset when designing products and their application. Circularity, the safe-and-sustainable-by-design concept and sufficiency are important approaches that should be publicised more widely. This is precisely where the GDCh could play an important role in the future by providing guidance and supporting informed decisions.With her involvement in the GDCh Sustainability Commission, Stefanie Wieck would like to make the work of her specialist group "Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology" more visible and contribute more to the discussions and external presentation of the GDCh. After all, sustainable solutions are not possible without sound knowledge of the environmental problems caused by chemicals. She also sees the work of the commission as an opportunity to network the specialist groups more closely with each other and to generate understanding for the respective positions and concerns.
Dr Eva Elisabeth Wille, Chairwoman of the GDCh Senior Chemistry Experts Group (SEC), is convinced that sustainable chemistry is not a question of age. For her, sustainability means one thing above all: concrete action instead of endless discussions. Sustainable chemistry cannot simply be prescribed or bottled like a magic potion - it requires courage and a willingness to take risks.
Chemistry and sustainability seem to many to be a contradiction in terms, but Eva Wille and the SEC prove the opposite. The topics of their ten annual meetings demonstrate this: Commitment to sustainable chemistry does not end with retirement. On the contrary - the experience of senior experts is indispensable for the transformation of chemistry. Eva Wille sees sustainable chemistry as an intergenerational task in which young and old must work together on solutions. The SEC specialist group is therefore actively involved in this important "struggle" and demonstrates that Sustainability needs the expertise of all generations.